Spirit of the Bear
by Ulquiorra9000
Summary: Mechwarrior Alana of the Ghost Bear Clan has always been second-best to Mechwarrior Zera, but when their Trinary runs into trouble against the Smoke Jaguars, Alana finds her own way to prove herself.


**SPIRIT OF THE BEAR**

By Ulquiorra9000

**A/N: **The 46th Bear Cavaliers and the planet Moonrise are fanon elements.

_**Wilderness, Moonrise**_

_**Clan Space**_

_**August 15, 3008**_

"My leg is hit!"

Mechwarrior Alana pushed on her joysticks and brought her battle-damaged _Thresher_ around to face her Starmate Zera's _Stormcrow_. The 55-ton 'mech limped along, trudging its wide feet through the snow while smoke leaked from its left leg. Plates of armor had peeled away from the leg like burned skin, and even from here, Alana could hear the pained creaking of the _Stormcrow_'s laborious progress.

Zera didn't have much time. Smoke Jaguar forces were still pushing rapidly, and at least two Stars of them were in striking range with another Star not far behind. Bright red ER lasers and blue ER PPC beams lanced through the freezing air and ravaged the backpedaling Ghost Bear forces, along with occasional volleys of LRMs.

Alana grit her teeth and cursed her Trinary's bad luck. For weeks, the Smoke Jaguars had been raiding Ghost Bear holdings on Arcadia, and finally, the 46th Bear Cavaliers' Star Colonel had snapped and sent a Trinary here to deal with the nuisance. This snowy little world was barren except for impressive pine forests, large lakes... and a Smoke Jaguar base loaded with supplies for staging raids.

"Mechwarrior Alana, fall back!" shouted a man's tinny voice in Alana's neuro-helmet. Star Captain Michael Bekker was a good man and a good commander, but he knew when he was beaten. The time had come for the 46th Bear Cavaliers to cut their losses, and they had to beat a hasty retreat from Moonrise. But that meant leaving behind Mechwarrior Zera.

And Alana wasn't sure she wanted Zera to fall.

"Star Captain, Zera is in trouble," Alana said tensely. She gripped her joysticks tight and watched Zera's _Stormcrow _limp away from the incoming Smoke Jaguars. The agonizing seconds crept by. "We need her."

Few could argue with that; Zera had grown up in Alana's sibko and had always been the favorite. Both girls had trained long and hard at a Ghost Bear facility on Arcadia, but however hard Alana pushed herself, however much she strove for perfection, Zera had always been one step ahead, and their training officer, a burly man named Ugri, had taken notice.

Now Zera could be lost to bloodthirsty Jaguars.

"Fall _back_! Now!" Bekker roared. His massive _Kodiak _led the retreat, with his fellow warriors surrounding him to protect his 'mech. "Or we will lose you too!" As he spoke, a stray ER PPC beam raked his 'mech's broad left shoulder. Globs of molten armor flew everywhere.

The Ghost Bear Trinary was putting up a good fight and doing its best to slow down the approaching Jaguars, but there was no doubt about how the ill-fated raid would turn out. Bekker's batchall had been courteously accepted by the Smoke Jaguar Trinary that garrisoned the world, and on paper, it had been an even fight. But Bekker hadn't counted on this.

Stray Autocannon shells from a _Phoenix Hawk IIC _rattled Alana's _Thresher _and she fought to keep herself steady. Her head rattled in its helmet and she saw flakes of armor chip off her 'mech's chest. And all the while, Zera's wounded _Stormcrow _was still limping along.

Alana knew that either she or Zera would get out of this alive, but not both. One would buy time for the other. But who?

Despite the heat of battle, a fond memory flashed through Alana's mind, back when she was just eight years old on Arcadia...

"_Gather 'round," announced Ugri, motioning with a gloved hand. His breath puffed in the chilly air of the animal preserve. Around him gathered a hundred boys and girls, all wearing the same slate-gray parkas and gloves while Ugri wore a coat of genuine Ghost Bear fur. All the kids, Alana included, chattered their excitement. For the first time, they were going to see live Ghost Bears._

"_This is a privilege. Never forget that," Ugri explained as the kids gathered around the wooden fence. He carried a large bag filled with chunks of raw meat. "The Ghost Bear is a majestic but reclusive beast, and the ones in this preserve are some of the few human-raised ones. They will have no fear of you, but all the same, you must respect them. Do you understand?"_

"_Aff!" the kids chanted eagerly. Alana stood on her tip-toes, the better to see over the head of a tall boy. She wanted to see the bears first._

_Ugri nodded. "Very good." He turned to look into the enclosure, and pointed at two massive animals that lumbered from out of a pine forest. Snow frosted the trees and the foliage white, making the animals even harder to see._

"_Here they are. Everyone take a piece of meat and carefully hold them through the fence," Ugri said as the bears approached the fence. "They are docile, but remember that you must respect them. We of the Ghost Bear Clan know the value of family and loyalty. Show these animals that you are their friends."_

_Alana knew that anyone from outside the warrior caste would have a fit seeing little kids feed massive bears, but that didn't bother her. In fact, it was an honor! She picked up a piece of meat and took up a spot along the fence._

_The two bears gobbled up the meat piece by piece, and finally, one of them brought its snout to Alana's open hand. The animal watched Alana with its milky white eyes, and Alana could almost feel it looking into her soul._

"_I am a Bear, as are you," Alana said quietly. "Are you my friend?"_

_The hungry bear blinked, then snapped up the meat and swallowed it whole. Alana never flinched, even though she felt the bear's teeth scrape her glove. Its pink tongue licked Alana's glove once, then the bear looked into her eyes again, as though to say: "Yes, I am your friend."_

A Smoke Jaguar _Mad Dog _had taken notice of Zera's weakness and closed in. Missiles poked out of its shoulder racks, but the 'mech didn't bother to use them. Instead, the pilot fired up his medium pulse lasers and peppered the _Stormcrow_'s left arm. Boiling bolts hammered the exposed limb until it split at the shoulder and fell off. The smoking arm tumbled across the frozen ground.

Desperate, Zera painfully whirled around her _Stormcrow _and struck back with her right arm's lasers. The beams struck true and melted armor from the _Mad Dog_'s center torso, scorching off the Smoke Jaguar logo. But it still wasn't enough.

"Mechwarrior Alana, what are you doing?" Bekker howled. "Fall back!"

But still, Alana didn't move. She and Zera had been warriors for only a year, and already, Alana felt that her career's defining moment had come. Her most bitter rival was in peril, and although Alana longed to find a way to prove herself in the Ghost Bear touman, she found herself hesitating. Exactly how would she prove herself? Who was she trying to impress? Star Captain Bekker? Zera?

Herself?

Slowly, cautiously, Alana pressed down on her acceleration pedal and set her _Thresher _into motion. The heavy 'mech broke out into a trot right toward the incoming Smoke Jaguars, drawing the _Mad Dog_'s attention. For one last second, Alana hesitated. Could she pull this off? Should she?

She remembered something else...

_Cheers erupted in the makeshift Circle of Equals as Zera mightily threw Alana onto her back. Both thirteen-year-olds had been locked in yet another mock trial, and in like the others, the bitter Alana had issued the challenge. And like the other times, Zera had won._

"_Freebirth!" Alana winced as she slowly got to her feet, but her aching body was in no shape to fight back. She knew that Zera had won, and she had no choice. "I concede."_

_Looking smug and exasperated, Zera folded her arms across her off-white uniform. "Have you learned your lesson yet, Alana? You cannot best me. You are only humiliating yourself."_

_Alana made a frustrated noise. "Tomorrow, same time. I will beat you then!"_

_The onlookers, fellow cadets of their sibko, cheered at the idea. But Zera only shook her head. "Forget it, Alana. I have had enough. Maybe you should study more."_

_Zera turned to go and Alana was forced to watch her walk away. Both of them had endured harsh training while many others had washed out to lower castes. Only fifteen members of the sibko were left, and Zera was the clear favorite._

_Alana had heard mutterings of her being considered a ristar, which made Alana's blood boil. She had worked so hard to be number one, but still, she couldn't get there. Many said that Zera had truly inherited the strength of the Ghost Bear, and that Zera would probably earn a Bloodname early in her career. No one had suggested that Alana could do so as well. After all, Alana didn't have the spirit of the bear. Or so everyone thought._

Now Alana squeezed her trigger. Ten Ultra Autocannon shells roared from her left arm and hissed through the air, peppering the _Mad Dog_. The Smoke Jaguar 'mech reeled from the blow as the shells struck the same spot where Zera's lasers had hit earlier. The _Mad Dog _spat out a few ER pulse laser shots that went wide.

Encouraged, Alana took a few more steps forward and flung twelve SRMs at the beleaguered _Mad Dog_. The missiles swallowed the 'mech's torso in fireballs and smoke, forcing the 'mech to back up a few steps to avoid falling over. What was more, one of the Ghost Bears fired his _Summoner_'s ER PPC and ravaged the _Mad Dog _further. Discouraged, the _Mad Dog _turned and fled into the pine forest.

"Good shot," Zera panted on the comm. "But you have to get out of here! What are you doing?"

"I am not leaving you behind," Alana said doggedly. Something was compelling her to stay while the rest of her Trinary was fleeing. She normally wouldn't risk her life for a rival, but this time... "Get moving, Zera."

"But -"

"GO!" Alana shrieked. She was in no mood to hear complaints. "I can hold them." As she spoke, a C-variant _Warhawk _was now lumbering toward Alana, its four gun barrels poised to unleash hell.

Reluctantly, it seemed, Zera turned back around and got her _Stormcrow _moving. The 'mech still had a shaky limp, but it managed to keep a steady gait back toward friendly lines.

Meanwhile, Alana locked her crosshairs onto the mammoth _Warhawk _and opened fire. Her two chest-mounted pulse lasers went first, riddling the bigger 'mech with glowing spots on its thick armor. Then, Alana's sole ER medium laser poked the _Warhawk_'s chest for extra damage.

Unimpressed, the Smoke Jaguar pilot brought his own weapons to bear. Guided by a Targeting Computer, large pulse laser bolts hammered Alana's _Thresher _from head to toe. Alana felt a thrill of dread as she saw damage piling up on her displays, but not even that could deter her.

Stubbornly, Alana hung on and kept the _Warhawk _busy. She strafed the bigger 'mech, placing herself between it and Zera's retreating _Stormcrow_. With another pull of the trigger, Alana spat out a cluster of UAC shells, and the projectiles slammed into the _Warhawk_'s left shoulder. Armor pieces flew everywhere.

That gave Alana an idea.

Whatever the variant, the _Warhawk _tended to concentrate most of its weapons in its arms, and arms could be severed with precise fire. So, Alana fired up her medium pulse lasers again and focused them on the _Warhawk_'s left shoulder. It partially worked; at least half of the bolts went wide, but the rest deepened the damage dealt by the UAC shells.

Annoyed, the _Warhawk _gave up on Zera entirely and squarely faced Alana's _Thresher_. It outweighed Alana's 'mech by twenty-five tons, and the pilot made sure to assert that advantage. An ER PPC bolt flashed through the cold air and pierced Alana's right torso, and Alana was dazzled by orange and red warning lights that flared in her warm cockpit. An alarm buzzed overhead.

Alana merely slapped her hand on a button to silence the alarms, then turned her attention back to the _Warhawk_. The ER PPC had busted a heat sink in her 'mech and broken the medium pulse laser, but Alana had other weapons and the will to use them.

Once again Alana launched her SRMs, two volleys of six. This time, however, the _Warhawk _pilot had caught on to Alana's plan and moved to the side. The warheads struck the left torso, hitting armor that the _Warhawk _could easily afford to lose.

Making use of its many double heat sinks, the _Warhawk _peppered Alana with more large pulse laser shots. The glowing red bolts stripped armor from the _Thresher_'s chest and thighs, wearing the plating thin.

_Keep steady. You are the bear. You endure. _Alana ran this through her mind over and over as she returned fire. Her lasers and Ultra Autocannon 10 missed the target again, instead pounding the _Warhawk_'s left and center torso. In return, large pulse laser bolts breached Alana's ER medium laser and another heat sink.

Words from the Oath of Acceptance ran through Alana's head like a marquee: "_Demand of yourselves the foresight of Jorgensson and the courage of Tseng; through them, we are strong. To them a debt is owed, repaid through loyalty undying and Character unflinching." _This was not a battle Alana could win, but maybe this wasn't the battle she was trying to win. She had something else to reach for, and no foul Smoke Jaguar could stop her from getting it.

Now, in the heat of battle, a sudden clarity had come to Alana's mind. She could surpass Zera in one way and one way only: by the spirit of the bear that she had nurtured through her training years. She couldn't see Zera's wounded _Stormcrow _anymore, but comm chatter suggested that the Ghost Bears were almost out of firing range and that Zera had returned to her Star securely.

The thought made Alana smile grimly.

Fire filled Alana's center torso as the _Warhawk_'s ER PPC caved in her torso. Her inner components were fried, and she felt sweat running down her face and chest as the flames started to fill her _Thresher. _No matter.

Alana juked her 'mech to the side, and this bought her enough time to snap off a few more shots. Her UAC 10 and medium pulse laser punched right into the _Warhawk_'s wounded shoulder. Sparks blasted from the injury.

It worked. The _Warhawk _fired again, but this time, only from its right arm's large pulse laser. No doubt that Alana had breached a few components and cut off the pilot's control of his arm.

Alana paid the price in full. Pulse laser bolts struck her right SRM launcher and breached it, then the shots tracked down and cut into the _Thresher_'s right torso. Smoke coiled from the exposed machinery.

By now, Alana's display screens were growing fuzzy and garbled, and a small screen on her right warned her that the ejection system had been busted. So, this was definitely going to be a one-way trip.

Still, Alana had something that neither Zera nor this Smoke Jaguar had: a deeper conviction to her totem animal. She remembered the day that she had fed a Ghost Bear, and she also recalled how she had been teased for taking the animal's mythos so seriously, studying it with an almost religious fervor. Anything to get ahead of Zera.

_Character unflinching._

Alana no longer cared that she was giving up her 'mech and her life for this. How could she abandon Zera when the latter was in trouble, especially since Zera had proven the better warrior? She had to take action. Such was the way of the Clan. This is what Hans Jorgensson and Sandra Tseng had advocated... loyalty, family, devotion. Character unflinching.

That was how Alana would prove herself.

Alana was still pulling her triggers, but she was just slowing the _Warhawk _down. With an authoritative step forward, the _Warhawk _carefully aimed its functioning ER PPC barrel and fired. Alana's _Thresher _jerked back as the beam tore into its frame. A chain of fireballs started to swallow the 'mech up, and Alana felt the flames burning her skin as they leaked into the cockpit.

Amid the fire, Alana reflected that she was not unhappy to die.

*o*o*o*o*

Mechwarrior Zera managed to keep her _Stormcrow _balanced even though it had a wounded leg and a missing arm. At last she reached the remnants of her Trinary, and by now the Smoke Jaguars were pulling back, satisfied that they had defended their facility and planet alike. A waiting dropship would take the Ghost Bear Trinary back to Arcadia to repair and refit.

But Alana wouldn't come back with them.

After all this time, Zera hadn't expected Alana to make such a sacrifice on her behalf. She had always had to put up with the other girl's jealousy and anger, but now, those feelings had been directed at the Smoke Jaguars instead.

So be it.

"Confirmed: Mechwarrior Alana killed in action," Zera reported as she scanned the other's ruined _Thresher_. The wounded _Warhawk _turned and lumbered off to join its fellows, leaving behind a charred husk. No ejection pod had been spotted, leaving only one conclusion.

"Very well," said Star Captain Bekker. "Bears, we are going home. The Jaguars have the day."

Zera allowed herself a moment of rage at the foul Smoke Jaguars, at the failed mission, and at the casualties her Trinary had suffered. Then, she found peace. She put it all behind her and walked back to the dropship with the others.

**END.**


End file.
